# Choose how to use Flowline

Choose how to use Flowline explains how this part of Flowline works and how to use it in a real workflow. This page is dummy content for testing the Cloudairy wiki: structure, navigation, search and rendering.

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<div><blockquote><p data-id="147864ae-4adc-44a1-bce5-0b0ebb4d0691"><strong>Note:</strong> Flowline is a fictional automation product. Section: <strong>Get started</strong>.</p></blockquote></div>
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## Prerequisites

- A Flowline account (cloud or self-hosted)
- Editor access to the project
- About 7 minutes

## How it works

Every workflow starts with a **trigger**, passes *items* from node to node, and ends when the last node finishes. Choose how to use Flowline fits in the middle of that chain: it receives items, does its work, and hands the result to the next node. Use `$json` to read the current item and `$node["Name"]` to reach an earlier node.

<img src="https://picsum.photos/seed/choose-how-to-use-flowline/1200/640" data-width="100%" styling-key="" data-align="center" data-flip-vertical="false" data-flip-horizontal="false" alt="Choose how to use Flowline — sample screenshot" data-original-url="" data-crop-mode="" data-image-radius="" data-show-border="" data-border-color="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)" data-border-type="solid" data-border-width="1px" data-key="img" data-userdata="">

## Step-by-step

1. Open the workflow editor and select **Add node**.
2. Search for **Choose how to use Flowline** and add it to the canvas.
3. Fill in the required parameters (see the table below).
4. Select **Test step** to run it with sample data.
5. Check the output panel, then **Save** the workflow.

## Parameters

| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Name | string | Yes | A label shown on the canvas |
| Mode | option | Yes | `run once` or `run per item` |
| Timeout | number | No | Seconds before the step fails (default 32) |
| Retry on fail | boolean | No | Retries up to 3 times with back-off |

## Example

```bash
# Choose how to use Flowline
docker run -it --rm \
  -p 5678:5678 \
  -e FLOWLINE_ENCRYPTION_KEY=change-me \
  -v flowline_data:/home/flowline/.flowline \
  flowline/flowline:latest
```

## Troubleshooting

| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Step shows *No output* | The previous node returned zero items | Pin sample data on the previous node |
| `401 Unauthorized` | Expired credential | Reconnect it under **Credentials** |
| Execution times out | Large payload | Split items with **Split Out** |

## Related

- **Build your first workflow**
- **Expressions**
- **Error handling**